The National Center for Learning Disabilities' RTI Action Network convened nationally renowned RTI leaders in Washington, DC on December 8, 2010 for a robust discussion and debate of RTI successes, persistent challenges, unanswered questions, and recommendations for solutions. Keynote addresses were delivered by Don Deshler, Eamonn Kelly, Alexa Posny, and Michael Yudin. In addition, the panelists explored the following topics:

Panel #1 - Realizing the potential of RTI - How comprehensive is implementation?

Panel #2 - Meeting the needs of struggling learners - How is RTI addressing the needs of students with disabilities, other students who need differentiated instruction, and students who need adequate instruction?

Panel #3 - RTI and learning disabilities identification

Panel #4 - Capacity for fidelity of implementation - What is needed to realize RTI’s potential?

The conversations begun at the live event continue on the RTI Leadership Forum section of our Web site. Forum agenda and resources for each Panel—videos of the presentations and responses as well as print materials—are posted on the Web site with commenting enabled so you can join the discussion. Share your thoughts on these topics!

The RTI Leadership Forum is made possible by generous funding from the Oak Foundation, the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation, and the Good Samaritan Foundation with additional support from Scantron/Spectrum K-12, the Clinical Assessment group of Pearson, Renaissance Learning, Wilson Language Training, the Cambium Learning Group, Winsor Learning, and the 95 Percent Group, Inc.

Video: Comparison of RTI and the Discrepancy Model

The RTI Action Network offers instructional video and audio content to highlight some of the important issues related to RTI. In our latest video, Jim Crawford, a former school psychologist and assistant principal at Boulevard Elementary in Gloversville, NY, discusses why the tiered RTI framework better enables educators to help struggling students. Listen to his valuable insights into the differences between the RTI and discrepancy models for determining students' eligibility for intervention services.

Upcoming RTI Talk: Partnering with Families in an RTI Framework

February 9, 2011 at 1 p.m. ET

Join the Colorado Department of Education team during our next RTI Talk as they answer your questions about developing family-school partnerships based on shared responsibility and shared ownership of student challenges and successes. They will also offer tips and examples of materials they developed to nurture the collaborative process through information sharing, problem solving, and the celebration of student successes.

Can you tell me if the 2004 reauthorization of IDEA is forcing people to choose to either continue using the discrepancy model, move to RTI, or choose a hybrid of the two? I have searched the regulations and am having trouble understanding the language?

NCLD's Public Policy Director Laura Kaloi emphasizes that one of the biggest changes to the special education law (now IDEA 2004) was the addition of new procedures for identifying children with specific learning disabilities (SLD) as outlined by a U.S. Department of Education topic brief. Read more to learn the specific criteria states must adopt and why IDEA 2004 doesn’t force a choice between the two models.

Login to RTINetwork.orgto post to our Discussion Boards or to participate in the RTI Leadership Forum conversation.

Registration is free and easy! Join our online community of educators and families to share information and gain insights on the effective implementation of RTI.

(left to right): James Wendorf, Executive Director of the National Center for Learning Disabilities; Alexa Posny, Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, U.S. Department of Education; Kathleen Whitmire, Director of NCLD's RTI Action Network, during NCLD's RTI Leadership Forum.

Blog: The "Big Ideas" that Characterize RTI in EC/Preschool Settings

In her latest Pre-K RTI blog series post, Dr. Robin Miller Young, an early childhood practitioner, thoroughly details the conceptual framework or "big ideas" that characterize RTI in EC/preschool settings. Read more to get a breakdown of these ideas and learn why she thinks the RTI framework will allow early childhood educators to achieve greater consensus on essential outcomes for student achievement.

NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

NAESP Annual Convention

Gretchen Goodman, an international education consultant and experienced early childhood educator, instructional support teacher, and staff development specialist, will lead two interactive sessions focused on RTI at the NAESP 2011 Annual Convention & Exposition. Her sessions (on Friday the 8th during the April 7-10 event in Tampa, Florida) offer practical, hands-on strategies that enhance learning for all children. For more details and to register, go to the NAESP Convention Web site.

A Program of:

The RTI Action Network is made possible by the generous support of Cisco Foundation.

The National Center for Learning Disabilities is listed by the Internal Revenue Service as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. All gifts made to NCLD are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.

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